The Strange Case of Faceless Victims and Slaughtered Sailors
by silver snowdrop 363
Summary: Things seem to be rather dull these days, with nothing unusual coming about. Ciel Phantomhive is ready to burst a vein from the boredom he is suddenly faced with when Sebastian arrives with a fresh, new mystery in his hands.
1. Chapter One: Unpleasant Troubles

A/N: I know I shouldn't be starting a new fanfic when I am trying to complete my older stories but, see, I had this dream and I just had to write it down somewhere. And before you know it, it turns into a story. I don't know whether it's a good thing or a bad thing, but, let's just see how it goes, okay? I'm planning to make this more of a novella than a novel, possibly only 10-12 chapters, since I think I tend to drag stories after I surpass that number. So, enjoy and I haven't asked this before but please take the time to review if you can, because my self-esteem seems to always be at stake these days...

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_**The Strange Case of Faceless Victims and Slaughtered Sailors**_

Chapter One: Unpleasant Troubles

It was one of those nights that just seemed to drag on forever. Ciel Phantomhive sat languidly in his chamber, skimming through countless letters that wished to invite him to the mid-autumn balls and festivals that were to be held in a few weeks or so. It was an understatement to say he wasn't the least bit interested. September wasn't exactly his favorite month and the fact that he had absolutely nothing to do wasn't making it any better. Things around town seemed to be going fine, no murders, no unusual events, not even the slightest of troubles walked into his line of sight. His servants were no different from usual, Finny occasionally annihilating the well-being of the courtyard gardens, Mei-Rin doing a splendid job of flooding his manor as always, and Bard doing his usual thing, always making sure the food was cooked just right so that it was as edible as a lump of charcoal. It would actually be complete chaos if it weren't for his convenient butler, Sebastian, and how he always managed to turn things around for the better. Yes, Ciel thought, it was good that Sebastian really knew how to work his magic on things that seemed screwed up beyond repair.

But, oh, were things ever so boring here… Ciel almost wished Sebastian would screw something up right now, just so _he_ would have something to do…! He was too tired to write a thousand rejection letters for the invites, yet too awake to sleep. How terribly unpleasant this was.

Ciel hurled a fountain pen at the door out of boredom, just when Sebastian entered the room, effortlessly dodging the object, and catching it easily between his gloved fingers. His expression remained neutral except for his eyebrows that raised themselves by a millimeter or so. He was pleasantly amused at the sudden temper of this normally composed child. Humans were most certainly fascinating creatures.

Sebastian glided over with a silver cart and delicately poured a cup of steaming blackcurrent tea, with the sweet, tangy aroma filling the room. He placed it over a small gold-lined plate decorated with beautifully hand-painted irises that matched the teacup, and gently set it beside the irritated young master. Ciel bent over slightly to sniff it and then took a tiny sip and made a disgusted face.

"It's too bitter. Add more sugar, Sebastian," He ordered, displeased.

"Yes, my lord," Sebastian replied, opening the lid of a fancy pot and took a silver teaspoon to scoop up a small amount of the shimmering white powder and dissolving it meticulously inside the tiny cup, with a light whir of his spoon.

Ciel Phantomhive snorted at the miniscule amount of sugar Sebastian had added and shook his head

"How will that be enough…?! That makes absolutely no difference," He complained flatly

"Any more sugar and it will completely alter this tea's original flavor. Also, it is a quarter past eleven at night, and consuming high amounts of sweet substances at this time, or any time for that matter, is very detrimental to your health…" Sebastian retorted calmly.

The boy looked infuriated and wouldn't talk to him anymore. There was a long moment of silence.

"But on the subject of the tea," Sebastian continued. "-forgive me, but I must argue that it may be your bitter temper that is making the tea too difficult for you to ingest, not the tea's initial taste…"

Ciel glared daggers at him and accidentally knocked over the barely touched cup of tea, spilling it all over the papers on his desk and on his clothes as well. Sebastian quickly went over and disposed of the damp articles and pulled out a white handkerchief from his waist-coat and delicately dabbed at the young master's drenched sleeves, muttering that he should have been more careful.

"Sebastian, what is the matter with you today…?" Ciel muttered, still angry about his tea.

The butler smirked, his eyes dark.

"You are one to talk, my lord," Sebastian observed, amused. "-your temper is most troublesome today, what is the reason for your sudden disputes, might I ask…?"

Ciel bristled and said nothing. Then a knowing expression came over Sebastian's intelligent red eyes.

"You feel blasé, my lord, am I correct?"

"_Terribly_," Ciel answered, impassively.

Sebastian smiled.

"Well then, young master, you are in luck. I just happened to receive a letter-

"-Another invite to some stupid ball or festivity -just dispose of it immediately," Ciel muttered, angrily.

"Oh, no, my lord, you are incorrect. It is a letter addressed to you from _her_. I believe you will find it very intriguing…"

A mildly excited look crossed Ciel's dim blue eyes.

"Finally," He mumbled. "-I thought I might die from the boredom I am plagued with these days…"

The butler smiled and an ominous look flashed in his eyes for a moment. His black pupils became slits and the room's comfortably warm temperature seemed to drop several degrees and Ciel shivered, motioning for Sebastian to close the back window.

Sebastian grinned and went over to tend to the already closed window and read over the young master's shoulder.

The letter read:

_To my dear Ciel Phantomhive,_

_I am writing to inform you of two quite unnatural events that have come to my attention, just recently. I will first tell you about the one that has happened not too far away from where you live, as that would seem most convenient for the both of us. It happened near the outskirts of London, where there is a wide expanse of open fields. Just a few nights ago, nine bodies were found, laid upon the dead grass. Their bodies formed a triangle and each victim's face was marred beyond recognition. They were all female. Most of them seemed to be of below middle class status, but it troubles me because these victims appear to work for the medicinal department within my kingdom, and a specific one, at that. They work in the underground, confidential facilities that utilize hazardous chemicals, and they never see the light of the day, so it concerns me on how the culprit got to these people. If they know of the private passageways under the kingdom, I need them eradicated so they will not cause further disrupt for me and possibly our beloved country._

_Second, is an even stranger case that involves more than one element. A relative of mine took a business trip to Asia via ferry, to investigate the issues Beijing was having with the chemicals that have escaped their factories, after the collapse of large machines within them. While trying to help them out, she noticed events quite peculiar, indeed. She was out in an open field with servants, when a pack of white bears exited a bamboo forest, along with several hyenas, a wild boar and a herd of antelope. None of these animals are regularly found in an Asian bamboo forest, which is the first factor that upsets me. On a second note, all of these animals formed a circle around her and the servants, as if under a hypnosis. She was trapped for several minutes until suddenly the hyenas attacked the antelope and the circle disbanded, breaking the charm. My relative and her caretakers escaped the broken circle and continued along their way, crossing a bridge that lead to a small fishing village. There was a man there, who only caught very tiny fish because he was only allowed to angle in shallow waters. The fishing industry would collapse soon due to the restrictions the administrators were passing to the workers. They were not allowed to fish in deep waters because there was a dangerous murderer that hid in those waters that would attack and brutally kill the sailors. _

_Here is the strangest part: they were slaughtered in the same way as the women in the fields: their faces marred beyond recognition. No other obvious exterior wounds on the body were found. We are uncertain if the interior areas of these people were disturbed, though, so be sure to investigate that. This case upsets me because this attacker is interfering, no, disrupting A/nwith the trading connections we have with Asia. The fishing industry believes the murderer is of Caucasian descent because he says the bodies smell strongly of roses, which is England's official flower. This is terrible, as this may cause trouble for us if they plan to attack London for this incident. _

_Please investigate these issues at once. _

_Sincerely,_

_Queen Alexandrina Victoria of England_

Ciel folded up the letter and placed it back inside the envelope and told Sebastian to burn it. When he raised his eyebrows the young master replied calmly that he should have been taking notes as a proper butler would. Sebastian grinned and proudly took out a roll of paper already filled with information gathered while he had been reading. Ciel sniffed and nodded, waving him away. The butler understood and decided to leave the child to his own abilities for the moment.

When Sebastian was out of earshot, Ciel sighed and looked contentedly out the window. Finally, he would have something interesting to do. He could almost feel the adrenaline of an intriguing mystery fill his blood with a familiar enchantment.

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A/N: On a side note, looking at the newest chapter of Kuroshitsuji, with the case of witchcraft and werewolves, we see something simular with the marred faces of the victims. But, I assure you, I had this dream about the faceless victims, several months ago, and a very different cause of it, in mind. So, no, it is not related to the latest chapter of Black Butler. I hope you liked the first chapter. I'm excited to see how this turns out :)


	2. Chapter Two: Sudden Plans

A/N: Madam Red is still alive in this story. This is because I feel like I can really relate to her backstory... And also because I thought she was pretty cool. Anyways, I had fun writing this so I hope you enjoy it too. Oh, and one more thing. Review. Seriously. Please. I will love you forever. *-*

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Chapter Two: Sudden Plans

After Ciel Phantomhive thought it over several times, he believed it was best to first gather as much information as possible on the event. This usually took a few seconds, but the highly-caffeinated black tea that Sebastian had previously served was keeping him up and about all night and even the brightest prodigies didn't do so well when it was half past two in morning and they could not catch a wink of sleep. Ciel was ready to kill Sebastian for the horribly unpleasant havoc he had caused to his brain, but the thing was, that butler was one of those people who were rather difficult to kill, to put it mildly. Heck, he wasn't even a _person_, so to speak. He was simply, as he called it: one _hell_ of a butler.

Oh, and another thing, Ciel thought with an annoyed look on his face. He would have to meet with Lau, that irritating man who always talked as if he knew what was going on and then at the end it turned out he basically knew nothing on the subject. And the constant harem of women he brought with him was rather irritating too. But he _was_ involved with the trading connections between Asia and England and he _was_ an Oriental Asian himself, so this had to be one of the cases that Lau should at least be a bit familiar with. And seeing how things were, if Lau came along, Madame Red, his crimson-loving aunt would probably show up too. This wouldn't be too much of a bad thing, since Madam Red worked for the Royal Hospital, so she might have some information regarding the first case with the faceless women in the medicinal department.

Anyhow, he just really needed to take a nap to refresh his mind. But sleep would not come and when the sun rose over the hills it shone painfully through the windows and into his eyes, making sleep virtually impossible now. Ciel sighed and shook his head. Whatever. He would find time to sleep later on. Right now, he needed to solve these cases.

So the first one involved the murdering of women who worked in the underground facilities, hmm? In most cases, he would have Sebastian do this kind of dirty work and look for clues underground, but that would leave _him_ just sitting around here doing nothing. Maybe he could use a walk anyway. He hadn't used his legs for ages.

Ciel rang a bell in his chamber and almost immediately Sebastian strode, smiling agreeably at him.

"Impeccable timing, as to be expected of the young master. Breakfast will be served momentarily,"

The butler had driven in the silver cart again and today, he flawlessly poured in a cup of sweet chamomile tea for Ciel, along with warm oats served in a bowl with peach slices and cream. A small dessert of diced strawberries in vanilla yogurt was placed alongside it.

Ciel looked at his meal, a bit confused.

Sebastian smiled and calmly explained.

"I thought we'd start out with something light this morning, as not to overwhelm your delicate tastes as I had carelessly done yesterday,"

Ciel grunted and slowly spooned the oats into his mouth. They were reasonably sweet and the peach slices tasted pretty nice too. Maybe he could excuse Sebastian for ruining the blackcurrent tea last night. It had been late anyway; maybe occasionally the butler wasn't up to par when he should be resting. He gently picked up the cup and sipped his tea. He raised his eyebrows at the slight hint of spice in the tea. It didn't taste bad though, he could adjust to it.

"I had sweetened it with a dash of honey, and added some delicate notes of fresh ginger. It is good for revitalizing your senses, as you seem rather fatigued today, my lord, and additionally, it prevents congestion in the throat and nose," Sebastian described fluently.

Ciel nodded and waved off the subject.

"Sebastian. Usually, I ask you to first investigate to gain some background knowledge on the case we are given. But I feel horribly bored today so I suppose I would like to accompany you for a change,"

The butler smiled.

"Very good, sir. I will make arrangements for us at once. On a final note, where is it you would like us to go?"

"Let's go straight to the scene of the crime to see what immediate clues we can find. I know it isn't our usual route when we do this kind of work, but my mind is in a very disorganized state, at the moment. If we want further information we may speak with _him_…" Ciel muttered, shivering.

"Understood. I will be ready in a moment,"

With a quick grin, Sebastian left to finish up the rest of his morning duties.

A moment later, the two of them were seated inside a carriage that jumped and skipped violently along the path to the outskirts of London. Ciel sighed, very irritated.

"I was_ hoping_ with the money we have, that you, Sebastian, could have bought us a _better_ ride to our destination," Ciel protested indignantly.

"It is not the carriage that is of substandard quality, my lord. The route you have chosen is the quickest route and it is also the most unpleasant. Your impatience can make your life more difficult than necessary, young master,"

Ciel sighed and shook his head, looking out the window. Slowly but surely the complexity of the town, the fancy shops, the warm bakeries, the exquisite restaurants all faded away into the dust until what was left were simply fields of dead grass, with occasional farms dotting the landscape here and there. The forests grew quite beautiful this time of the year, with the vibrant reds, blazing oranges and warm golds filling the scenery with a nice burst of color. It was a shame that such dark crimes were being committed amongst such lovely places like this.

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When they finally arrived at the scene of the crime, it was completely deserted, not a body in sight. The wind blew, cold and empty and the sky was a sickening gray. Crows cackled, their black feathers scattering as they flew off. It was a sorry sight to behold.

Sebastian surveyed the surroundings and quickly found the area the bodies had been laid down that night. He bent down and gave the grass a swift swipe with his gloved forefinger. He sniffed and then reported back to the young master.

"I couldn't detect any chemicals used, my lord. This means these women must have been killed with another means of assassination,"

Ciel coughed lightly and peered coldly about the empty field. They needed to find more evidence then this in order to solve this case. Just knowing that the victims were not killed using chemicals was not enough.

"I don't see any traces of blood either," The young master observed. '-so we can deduct razors, broken glass, or really any sharp objects out of the equation,"

"Yes, that is true. You know, my lord, seeing how things are going, I'm afraid we will have to pay _him _a visit whether we like it or not..."

Ciel sighed heavily and shook his head.

"No. I went into all this trouble to accompany you here, I'm not going to leave empty handed..."

"From what I see, the murderer has not left behind any other means of evidence. If we just stay here trying to find more hints, we will just be wasting time,"

Ciel snorted, glaring at the butler.

"You have been awfully opinionated these past few days. What gives...?"

Sebastian placed one hand upon his own heart and simply smiled politely at the young master.

"I am only being truthful, my lord. One of your orders when we first made the contract was that I would not lie to you. Isn't that right...?"

Ciel grumbled and reluctantly agreed. He told the butler to take him there in the swiftest means possible. Sebastian took the boy in his arms and with that he raced the two of them back into town.

The place hadn't changed since they last visited. The Undertaker inhabited a very weather beaten old shack. The windows were boarded in and it smelled of damp, rotting wood. Ciel shivered. He did not like visiting this place very much. Just the sight of it gave him goosebumps.

"Ladies first," Sebastian chimed pleasantly, winking.

The young master glared at him and went inside.

The room was terribly messy, old tomes strewn across the floor; worn paperwork stuffed every which way, crooked book shelves lining the walls, with cobwebs hanging in every nook and corner. The walls and ceilings were grey and sullen with age, coffins pushed up against it. Dim lanterns swayed along the walls.

Sitting crudely behind a rotting ink stained desk full of old pens and botched parchments, was none other than the Undertaker himself. With a cheeky grin on his scarred face mostly covered by his scrunched black hat and long silver hair, he peered over at the young master and his butler, though the tilt of his hat hid his eyes. He snickered and rubbed his hands together, his long nails shining.

"So you've finally decided you're ready for one of my coffins?" He cackled with glee.

Ciel glared daggers at him and declined the matter immediately.

"No, quite fortunately I am not here for that purpose," He replied flatly. " - I am here to request information upon-

"-Upon the murders of the workers in the Queen's medical department...?"

The young master shivered. How was it that he _always _knew exactly what he wanted...?

The Undertaker snickered to himself and gave Ciel one of his creepiest grins.

"Ciel Phantomhive. There is no need in asking me why I always know what you want. I _always _know what _each and every one _of my customers want. It's part of my job description," He whispered slyly.

"Yes, well, so will you tell me-

"-Ah, Ciel, dear boy, don't you remember my policy...?" He chuckled boorishly.

The young master sighed heavily. Yes, he did know, alright. And he hated it. It was terribly inconvenient that the Undertaker had such a twisted sense of humor. You could never tell the same joke twice. And most of the time when you weren't trying to be funny he would randomly burst into hysterical laughter and you could never quite figure out what exactly it was that made him laugh so hard. Was it your joke or was just the way you were...?

"Making you laugh is tiresome and I don't have much energy at the moment. Sebastian," Ciel commanded.

"Yes, my lord," The butler smiled politely, placing a hand over his heart. "-please go outside. And if you peek, you're innocence has been warned..."

"Don't worry about it. I wouldn't dream of listening to what kind of things you have to say to make _him _laugh..."

With that, the young master left and waited outside the door. He knew that to protect his innocence he shouldn't look, but due to his curiosity or maybe his unclear mind, he found himself peeking through tiny cracks in the boarded windows anyway. Ciel was terribly disappointed when he saw what Sebastian was doing. It wasn't entertaining or even mildly funny. He looked like he was just telling a story with his fingers and occasionally grinned suggestively. The Undertaker looked like he was about to laugh, but then he suppressed his laughter and _poof_ it disappeared like that. It was like watching a balloon deflate. A very creepy balloon that had white hair growing out of it. Ugh. He just ruined his own appetite.

Ciel began to get impatient. If Sebastian couldn't make the Undertaker laugh then _he _would have to do it himself. Ciel looked around for any hints on a funny joke. There were bushes, a stray banana on the road and a half-eaten watermelon slice, but the young master didn't have a wrong mind like a lot of us do so _obviously _he couldn't think of a single crude joke from those objects while we could think of _thousands. _(If you know what I mean...)

Anyway, finally his eyes strayed back to the Undertaker's shack and Ciel noticed that he didn't completely fix the sign on the entrance. Instead of _Undertaker, _it was missing some letters. Ciel chuckled darkly. Yes. He had the perfect joke now. It wasn't even funny. Well, the fact that he actually had a joke that might actually make the Undertaker laugh was pretty funny. He sighed. He needed someone to remind him to never sign up for stand-up comedy. Ever.

Ciel opened the door and stepped in calmly, but a look of pure determination shone in his eyes. Sebastian grinned, amused. The Undertaker looked surprised, wondering what was going on.

"Sebastian," Ciel spoke irritably. "- you were unsuccessful in your endeavor to make him laugh...?"

The butler looked deeply disheartened. He shook his head and sighed heavily.

"It is my deepest apology. It appears my crude sense of humor has gotten under par over the last few months..."

"Don't worry about. I have...a joke I would like to try on the Undertaker,"

Sebastian looked over at the Undertaker and the man grinned so wide his smile could probably fit that half eaten watermelon slice Ciel saw lying sadly on the road. He motioned for Ciel to proceed.

"Please continue, Ciel Phantomhive. It interests me that you have a joke in mind..." He chuckled creepily.

Ciel coughed bitterly and cleared his throat. Here goes nothing. He looked around. If the windows were boarded nobody would hear him right? He spent years perfecting his flawless image and if anyone outside of this room heard what he was about to say, it would be the end of his life. Well, his public one anyways.

"Uh...What do you call a man who takes care of dead cows...?"

"I don't know..." He spoke, grinning furiously.

Ciel was silent for several moments. Then he couldn't take it anymore.

"An Uddertaker,"

The man stared at him for two seconds and burst into hysterics so hard that the walls shook and paintings fell and shattered, the boards on the windows ripped apart explosively and he kicked his poor desk so hard it broke in half and all the pens and papers scattered all over the floor. He was literally rolling on the floor laughing. Ciel could not comprehend what he had just done.

"I don't get it. It's not even funny. But seeing that what I don't find funny, _you _find funny-

"-You took _advantage _of that and created a _perfect _joke...Ciel, dear boy, you are a _genius_...Ufufufufu...you are astounding…"

Ciel grinned. Even Sebastian had coughed with what sounded like a suppressed chuckle.

"Not bad, my lord…And here I thought you did not have a crooked sense of humor..."

"I don't. I didn't think it was funny. I thought it was stupid." He deadpanned.

The Undertaker continued to hiccup with chuckles until he finally stopped himself. Then he smiled happily at the bunch.

"So...what is it you'd like to know...?"

Ciel didn't miss a beat.

"We would like to know more information about the murder of the women..."

"Hmmm...Be more specific please,"

Ciel grumbled and shook his head.

"We would like to know _how _they were killed,"

The Undertaker sighed dramatically and took a strand of his long silver hair between his fingertips.

"See, unfortunately for us, I only received their corpses yesterday night, quite late, and I was bothering myself with some other things so I did not have time to check upon them...You're welcome to take a look at them, though,"

Ciel nodded and then stopped.

"Wait. You said that you only received the corpses last night. But I also received the letter from the Queen regarding this case last night as well. That's an impossibly short notice. I feel like there are certain things that are being kept from me..." He muttered quietly.

"Well, unfortunately, the Queen is not one of my customers so I don't know what she wants. If she is hiding any information, I will not be able to help you with that..."

Ciel shrugged and waved it away. He motioned for the Undertaker to show him the corpses.

Sebastian rushed to his side.

"Are you sure about this, my lord? The sight may scar your delicate eyes,"

Ciel snorted and glared at him.

"My eyes have witnessed worse sights than what I am about to see, that I can assure you..."

"Very well, my lord,"

The butler followed the young master as they walked over to a trap door. The Undertaker grinned at them.

"I keep my lovely but yet uncleansed corpses underground so they can maintain their _condition_ and not dry up. It is quite troublesome to clean a shrivelled body as I am sure you can imagine..."

Ciel shivered.

"And _thank you_ for making me imagine it..."

"You're very welcome. Anyhow, here we are. Ah- Be careful! Corpses are beautiful but _very _fragile...!"

Ciel moved to the side and Sebastian slowly lifted the lid of the coffin. The young master nearly hurled and complained the stench was making him swoon with nausea. He doubled over and the butler supported him with his arms. Ciel glared and pushed him away. Sebastian seemed a bit hurt for a moment but then quickly recovered his usual unreadable face of serenity.

The woman's face was heavily shrivelled and the skin folded over itself so many times the features were completely hidden, the skin ridden with hundreds of shapeless bumps of every size. It was a sickening yellow color and the shape of the face itself was very much distorted. It was a faceless monster.

Sebastian took a piece of the skin and lightly rubbed it between his fingers but even the lightest movement made the tenderly wrinkled skin roll effortlessly away, revealing the stark white of a cheekbone. Ciel slapped his hand away and the quick jerk caused the large sliver of skin to tear completely and it flew up into the air and landed into a dark, unlit pile of bodies near the back of the room.

"Sebastian...! Why did you do that?!" Ciel screeched, covering his eyes. He could never unsee what he'd just saw. What a horrible, horrible sight. And now thanks to that butler he would be scarred for life.

"I needed to check the elasticity of the skin. It can give us information on how the skin was tortured,"

"I need a break from you and your _information_..." Ciel muttered, still hiding his face. He was almost tearing up from how disgusting it was.

"Young master, when solving a mystery, sometimes we will have to do things that threaten to push out our usual morals." He explained calmly.

"Or the food in our stomachs for that matter..." Ciel grumbled, put out that the butler explained it so calmly.

Sebastian grinned and nodded.

"Anyhow, I have discovered how they murdered these women. They smell clean other than the usual rotting smell of decay. This simply means a tub of boiling water must have been poured onto their faces. They must have overheated to death,"

"Why are their faces yellow?" The young master demanded.

Sebastian smirked.

Ciel glared at him.

"I'm not trying to be racist. But I highly doubt the British Queen secretly employs Oriental Asian women to work in her private facilities, especially because there is a severe distrust between them and us at the moment. Plus, even Eastern women do not have skin of this kind of yellow. This is an unnatural color, it is almost green..."

"Yes, my lord, I do agree. It is the color of preserved vegetables. This case is even stranger than I thought,"

The three of them went back to the ground floor of the shack and Sebastian turned to the Undertaker.

"We thank you for the information you've given us. We will be taking our leave now,"

The Undertaker, yes, you guessed it, he grinned so wide you could fit three tennis balls into his mouth.

"Anytime,"

With that, the young master left with his butler helping him with their means of returning home. Ciel thought now they had more questions than answers but he believed anything could be solved after a good night's sleep.


	3. Chapter Three : Wavering Thoughts

A/N: Today's chapter is a little short. But I promise to write more for the next chapter! Special thanks to promocat and Silvia Grace for reviewing :) It makes me happy to know that you guys like the story so far. I'm excited to see where this will go. Btw, hopefully after winter break I will finally have completed my older stories :P Enjoy.

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Chapter Three: Wavering Thoughts

_Do you remember who I am? From the look on your face I know you do. I know what you want. And I will never let you have it, even if it takes me to the darkest reaches of hell. I know how much it hurts. I am tired of hurting. I am sick of facing it alone. That's why this time I will be the one to watch you burn. And if I burn, surely you will crumble with me. _

_A sear of heat strikes him across the neck and he tumbles backwards, stumbling upon the uneven ground. He feels it, the blood drawn from his jugular, slick and warm. It stings with a sharpness but he does not wince. He wipes the excess off the side of his mouth. His pale hands are stained with it. The blood is painful upon his fingertips. They corrode his skin slowly, until he feels nothing but the rawness of agony. He coughs and spits, breathing heavily. It's almost over. It is the end. _

_One final time he grits his teeth and stands strong, but he knows he can't fight. He is tired. He is tired of hurting too. But he will not burn. No. He will not burn. No. No...No!_

_But though his mind screams to stay awake, his heart grows weary and defenseless. It is no use. The boy crumbles to the ground. As hands swarm over his figure, the scene melts into darkness._

He shoots straight up, panting, tears embedded in his eyes. No. What was that...? Ciel rubs his eyes and breaths slower, trying to decrease his sudden pounding heart rate. His contracted eye did not as much as waver slightly when Sebastian was at his side in a moment, inspecting for any problems, any issues. The young master quickly dismissed his outburst as simply an unpleasant dream. But it was more than that. It hurt. The pain felt powerful, crippling, almost real. It reminded him of his first meeting with Sebastian. But it wasn't the same. It felt different, sharper, darker. It filled his heart with unsteadiness and disturbance. It felt strange.

"Young master! Are you sure you are alright? You have never been like this for years...!"

Ciel shook his head, and loosened his frame from the butler's grip. He frowned at him and cast his woes aside.

"I am fine. There's nothing wrong with me. I suppose it may be the fault of that horrible tea you served, it kept me without a wink of slumber, the night before. It would seem normal that my mind would suddenly commence such strange antics of its own..."

The butler smirked.

"So quick to change the subject, my lord. Does the idea of weakness frighten you?"

"Not as much of a fear as it is an annoyance. I do not have the time or the luxury to grieve over that said, what new notions do you have upon the case, Sebastian? "

The butler smiled and thought for a moment. Then he ran a slender gloved hand through his coal black hair, catching strands that fell around his crimson eyes. He smelled faintly of blood.

"I have been gathering information about this case at night. It appears we were too hasty upon our investigation of the scene of the crime. I was speaking with some of the farmers that lived nearby and each one of them mentioned a hidden ditch somewhere in the fields. It could possibly be a hideout of the murderer,"

Ciel shook his head.

"I highly doubt someone as skilled as to be able to find his way around the complex underground passages of the Queen's kingdom, would be so simple-minded that he had a location right below the crime scene. It could simply be the home of some wild animals...Not to mention, there is also a chance it is a rigged trap,"

The butler grinned, chuckling.

"Very clever thinking, my lord. But I advise that we still take a look. The ditch may contain tunnels that could lead us to the murderer. It could well be a quick solution to the entire case,"

The young master nodded and brushed away beads of sweat that had caught in his brow. Sebastian was right. But part of him felt rather unsafe.

"There is strength in numbers. I would prefer that we were accompanied by some people,"

"Very well, sir. Of whom did you have in mind? "

"Lau and possibly my aunt, Madam Red. Don't laugh, I know they are an irritating lot, but their knowledge may serve us well in this mystery. Think about it for a moment,"

Sebastian smiled and nodded. It wasn't a bad idea to keep a few more people around. Who knew what sort of unnatural events would unfold beneath the surface of the earth? It was better to be safe than sorry.

"Right you are, my lord. I will notify them so we can discuss this in the morning. For the time being, please resume your slumber. You need to be well rested to have energy for the day to come,"

Ciel grumbled and reluctantly agreed, sliding back down until he lay uncomfortably on his bed. Sebastian gently pulled over the covers and rested his hand upon the boy's flushed forehead for a moment. The young master was too fatigued to push his hand away. He simply closed his eyes.

The butler turned and began to leave. A voice coughed, addressing him.

"Sebastian. Stay with me until I fall asleep,"

He smiled and bowed lightly towards the boy.

"Yes, my lord,"

Sometime later, a quiet withdrawal of breaths could be heard. Sebastian walked over and watched as the young master's small chest rose and fell with each intake of air. He smiled slowly and with a sigh, his candle burned out.


	4. Chapter Four : Brief Discussion

A/N: Hi, I'm back :) This chapter may not be too eventful but important things get discussed here, so yes, it is necessary. It's been a busy week for me and it will probably continue to be like that. I will try to update once a week. Oh, and a big thank you to my lovely reviewers: promocat, Silvia Grace and Tosca Thor Cat. You guys make so happy, I mean it :) Enjoy the story and one last thing, cats are awesome :D

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Chapter Four: Brief Discussion, Or So He Thought...

It was high noon when the everyone finally arrived. Madam Red came by carriage, closely accompanied by a different butler, his name unmentioned. Grell Sutcliffe was nowhere to be found. When asked, she simply shook her head, muttering he was probably up to no good at the moment. He had been a detrimental butler anyway. She was better off without him. Lau came like the way he always did. Mysteriously. And of course, followed by his regular harem of Asian females who delighted in tying their shiny black hair into tiny buns and wearing striking china doll dresses.

Ciel was waiting, a bit impatiently, for them, seated stiffly in his usual comfy chair behind a large mahogany desk, relatively organized, with maybe a few papers sticking out here and there and possibly a couple dabs of black ink spatters. His chamber had been set up by Sebastian to represent a meeting room, with a circle of heavily cushioned chairs surrounding an expensive looking coffee table. A couple knocks omitted from the partially closed door and the butler sauntered over to let the guests in.

"Oh, Sebastian! What a pleasant surprise. You know, my offer to you still stands," Madam Red chirped sweetly, giving him a quick wink.

The butler smiled politely and mumbled he was grateful for her kindness, but he was happy with serving the young master at the moment. She sighed dramatically and reluctantly consented, picking up her skirt as she walked over and comfortably settled onto a red velvet chair.

Lau entered, giving Sebastian a polite nod, or as much of a polite nod as he could muster, seeing that one of his female fans was connected to him by the hip, and draped her arms around him as if clinging onto dear life. Several carbon copies of the woman soon followed.

He sinks deeply into an emerald green chair and the Asian girl sits down calmly onto his lap. The other women surround him, some sitting on the ground and others seated languidly on the arms of the chair. Their dresses were very short and heavily revealed their long pale legs. Ciel coughed lightly, a bit uncomfortable.

"Well, then. Now that everyone has settled down, I shall commence this discussion at once,"

Sebastian left for a moment and swiftly returned with a silver cart with afternoon tea and scones. He went around, serving the guests patiently and politely.

"The aroma of the tea is beautiful. Sebastian, you are nothing short of astounding! And you are equally gifted in the looks department as well..." Madam Red chuckled softly, giving his sleeve a gentle pat.

"Ah, there is no need for such compliments, Madam. I am simply...one hell of a butler," Sebastian chimed pleasantly.

"Right you are, Sebastian. I cannot begin to express how lucky my dear nephew is, to be assisted by such a worthy butler like yourself,"

"Ahem! I would like to begin the discussion now, if you please..." Ciel grumbled, a bit annoyed.

"Ah, yes. Sorry, sorry, I got carried away...! Please continue," Madam Red chuckled, apologetically.

The young master sighed and waited until all was silent. He motioned for Sebastian to close the curtains and make sure no one could eavesdrop upon the commotion that was about to commence. It made the room uncomfortably dark, so Sebastian left a tiny gap so a small shaft of sunlight shone in, weakly illuminating Ciel's bluish grey hair. He cleared his throat again and began.

"I am sure you are all aware of the incidents that have been going on within the kingdom and in Beijing. Quite horrible, aren't they? "

"Ah, yes, Ciel Phantomhive. These incidents have left me quite troubled to say the least. I couldn't think of worse situations Beijing is facing, at hand," Lau lamented miserably.

Madam Red blinked, wide eyed.

"I'm sorry, but I don't quite understand. Please elaborate. I may have heard of this, but I just want to make sure,"

"You haven't heard of these incidents, Madam? Where have you _been _for the past week -absently enjoying yourself at the lavish parties you so religiously attend every other day?" Lau mocked snidely.

She glared at him, incredulous.

"For your information, the _lavish parties _I attend, are mandatory events that I take time out from my busy schedule to fit into my life. I have a reputation, Lau, and it is a lady's duty to maintain her social life whilst having a successful business life. A balanced life is what I lead, and I would appreciate it if you would so kindly _respect _that," Madam Red replied pleasantly, adding venom to some innocent italics.

"Well, then, Madam, I'm afraid we will have to turn to Ciel Phantomhive to explain-

"-_You _didn't even have a _clue _about- ?! You little -!"

"Please, everyone settle down," Sebastian spoke calmly. " - it is not a particularly troubling issue if you haven't heard of this incident we so vaguely speak of. Please elaborate upon this subject for our guests, my lord,"

"Very well. I am not concerned if you don't immediately remember this topic, as it was fairly recent. It seems someone has been sneaking into the Queen's underground passageways and murdering the women who work in her medicinal department. Madam Red, you work at the Royal Hospital as a doctor, so I was wondering if you had any information for us upon this case,"

She smiled briefly and thought for sometime. Then she cleared her throat and went through her purse, taking out a stash of papers. She flipped through them with black gloved fingers, muttering to herself until she finally found what she was looking for.

"Ah, yes. One of my assistants in the medicinal department within the hospital sent me a report that may be of some use to us. She said that there have been a large number of certain drugs requested from an unknown authorized user. These drugs are never returned. Sometimes at night my assistant reported hearing sobbing and muffled shrieking coming from the underground sections of the medicinal department. She tried to investigate but in the mornings she could never find any evidence of murder and in the evenings the entrance to the underground is locked,"

"Is there anything particular about the drugs or the user that may have caught your attention as absurd or unnatural?" He inquired.

She paused for a moment, scanning through her papers again.

"Now that I think about it, two weeks ago, I caught a glimpse of a strange man that did not frequent at the Royal Hospital. He wore regular clothes, a grey trench coat, black slacks and leather shoes. What was abnormal about him was that he had very crooked, twisted hands and I don't know how you can properly explain it, but something felt quite odd about his face, I don't remember what it was but I felt a heavy feeling of unpleasantness and suspicion,"

"Could you perceive his ethnic background? Did he smell even slightly of roses?"

Madam Red shook her head in apology.

"No, you see, I was too far away to tell what descent he was of and his smell. I had been discussing a Caesarean issue with one of my fellow colleagues at the moment- see, a patient died recently from severe blood loss when the technique was being performed,"

The young master blinked, feeling a bit sick, but motioned for her to continue on.

"-It was very unnatural, the performer was one of the hospital's most experienced surgeons, but the woman went into severe shock when she suddenly woke up from the anesthetic and writhed and twisted violently about until she tore herself into two. Later, when the doctors were examining the body they found traces of drugs inside this woman, and would you believe it, it was the _same_ drug that was constantly being taken from the hospital by the anonymous user. It's ridiculous, isn't it?"

Ciel's eyes shone brightly and a look of determination came across his face.

"As strange as it may sound, I believe we're onto something here. Now if we could just take a look at the corpse of this woman, Sebastian may be able to find what these drugs are-

"Can't the Madam just ask what the drugs were? She works at the hospital. It would be a lot less trouble. And why do we even need to know what drugs were used? How will this help us solve the case, is what I want to know..." Lau muttered quietly.

Ciel's eyes widened in surprise.

"You are not your usual self today. Is there something urgent you would rather do than solve this case?"

"You said earlier that there were _incidents. _Correct me if I am wrong but that is plural. If we can solve this case in less time, we can just move on to the next one,"

"The second case is connected to the first one,"

"Then why not solve them simultaneously...?"

Ciel sighed heavily and shook his head.

"Lau, this isn't like mathematics. We need to acquire more information about the first case in order for us to piece together the second case. The more information we can get, the more accurate our theories will be,"

"Not necessarily. There is the question of whether we can gain the correct information or not. People lie, you know. As I've experienced, China is full of liars. If our second case involves going to that region of Asia, we are going to go through a lot of complications before we even gather the right knowledge..."

All was silent as the guests and the hosts were unable to continue the conversation. Finally the young master rolled his eyes and directed his attention to Lau.

"Seeing that you are suddenly so clever, why don't you explain a plan that will help us move forward...?" He declared, a bit irritably.

"Please be polite to the guests, my lord. We must cooperate as a team in order to use our strengths to the best of our abilities,"

Ciel threw a withering glance at Sebastian and waved it off, mumbling the scones were too cold so it was interfering with his cooperative abilities. The butler smirked but under the dim lighting of the room, the guests could not tell, so they said nothing. Finally, Lau cleared his throat and everyone's attention turned to him.

"Our objective is to solve this case. There are only two simple factors that we need to figure out in order to solve this case. The culprit and the reasons why the culprit committed the crime. After we discover these two things, the case is solved," He described simply.

"Yes, but we need to gather information- alright _the correct information, _in order to find these two factors," Ciel argued.

"Correct, Ciel Phantomhive. So, how do you suppose we should start gathering information...?"

Two loud groans of annoyance could be heard, one more of a shriek than a groan.

"If I have to listen to _one_ more of those bloody mind gameswhere you _pretend to be intelligent _just for it to turn out that you are actually a _complete dunce_ I will take my umbrella and perform _fatal Caesarean _to your blasted throat!"

"Madam Red, please calm down. You are wasting your breath-

She turned and looked irritably at the unnamed butler who suddenly entered the conversation.

"And _you _are wasting your breath talking to me. Do not interrupt a lady when she is speaking,"

"Technically, you had finished speaking-

"-And we're not getting technical here, so please shush," She retorted flatly.

The unnamed butler retreated to the darkest corner of the room where he commenced in growing mushrooms to cope with his fortress of solitude. Meanwhile, life moved on outside of his little region of space.

The young master sighed and cleared his throat for the umpteenth time. If things were going to keep going the way they were eventually he would not have enough throat to clear. He sipped his tea and let the bitter taste hang on his tongue until he could think of something to say.

"Alright. Sebastian, what do you believe would be the correct path of advancement? I normally call the shots here and I still shall but I would like to hear your opinion. You've barely talked in this dragging hour and a half," Ciel grumbled, annoyed.

The butler smiled and politely objected that he had simply been listening to everyone's perspective so he could find the most suitable solution to their issue at hand.

"Well, my lord, I suggest you use the path most comfortable for the moment as you despise taking unnecessary risks. You usually trust your instincts, so why not follow your first idea?"

"Alright. We shall go to the Royal Hospital and see what information we can acquire about these drugs used on the victims of this case. At the moment, how much information do you know about the drugs, Madam Red?"

"Nada,"

"Well, then. That gives us the perfect opportunity to start gathering information,"

With that, everyone made arrangements to meet each other at their destination at half past nine the next day.


	5. Chapter Five : Frantic Impulse

A/N: It's been a while :) I was really busy for the past few weeks so I could update. Sorry. Anyhow, I am really happy that you guys are still reviewing! Thank you to promocat and haruda and of course all of my dear readers. It's good to know my writing has gotten a bit better since I had first come to Fanfiction. Until next time :)

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Chapter Five: Frantic Impulse

"Emergency! Emergency! We have a child who has just collapsed in the west wing of the Royal Hospital! Out of the way! We must get through!"

Madame Red pushed furiously through the unusually large crowd of patients who had settled themselves densely in the waiting room. Cries of discomfort and anger rose from the unattended people, ranging from tiny toddlers to the elderly who walked with canes. It _was _fall, the unpredictable season when it could be pleasant one moment and disastrous the next, but was it really possible that so many fell victim to the weather...? The numbers were ridiculous.

Sebastian followed close behind her, with an unconscious young master in his darkly clothed arms. What had happened to him was even stranger, he had simply complained of a pounding headache and then the next thing the butler knew, Ciel was passed out on the floor, his face sickly white and slick with perspiration. His breathing was weak, his pulse weaker as if someone had nearly drained the life out of him.

Was it the tea he served that morning? The imported leaves did not smell as fresh and crisp as he had liked but Sebastian thought he might have simply been over thinking things. His mind had been very preoccupied lately. It was probably because he hadn't been able to gain any further evidence at all in his nightly investigations for the past few days. It really bothered him. He liked always being a few dozen steps ahead of the young master. Maybe this time it just wasn't his day.

Lau and his entourage were nowhere to be found. That did lead to immediate suspicions, considering the Eastern Chinese Trades were against them Londoners at the moment, but Sebastian wasn't ready to make hasty accusations just yet. There just wasn't enough solid evidence, they weren't hitting the nails on their heads fast enough.

And to top it off the young master had to make a scene by suddenly fainting in the middle of the hallway and not waking back up. Sebastian didn't know if Ciel was feigning it or not but it was incredibly inconvenient for them both at the present time.

A sly smile crept his lips. If that brat was really faking it to get him off he would make that difficult child play Schubert's _Serenade_ until his delicate neck was permanently bent crooked and his tiny fingers cramped and bled. Yes. That would be perfect.

After Madame Red banged the front door of each appointment room impatiently with a tightly clenched fist, they finally came across one that was unoccupied. It was near the end of the hall and it smelt thickly of rubbing alcohol and vinegar. She wrinkled her nose in disgust and hurried the butler in.

Sebastian laid Ciel's fragile frame gently onto the hospital bed and commenced on a standard head to toe check-up, trying to find a pulse, first on the side of his neck, then on the underside of his thin wrist. The young master's hands were cold, but it wasn't a deathly cold, it was a temporary kind of cold that would soon pass. The butler bent over slightly and pressed an ear against the left side of Ciel's small chest. Nothing. His eyes widened, as his mouth formed a thin line. The young master wasn't breathing but surely he wasn't...!

Sebastian paused and stopped his own breathing, to make sure he could hear even the slightest of sounds. Silence. All was quiet. Nothing. He began to panic.

What would he do now? They didn't plan this- Ciel was not supposed to collapse into some kind of coma- how on earth were they suppose to continue on now...? Madam Red blinked, looking nervous but stayed back, giving Sebastian his space.

No, no- there it was-! It was very weak but if he listened hard enough he could make out a tiny thump of a heartbeat, soft, hesitant. His breathing was slowly returning, though it was irregular. His hands, delicate and pale were beginning to have color. His warmth was slowly coming back. Relief flooded the butler's eyes. Huh. It was about time. He had almost begun to be genuinely worried.

But wait. Wait a moment. Something wasn't right. The young master was breathing, normally now, but he wasn't awakening. This wasn't unconscious breathing, the kind of slow, sure breaths you take when you are asleep. This was conscious breathing. He was supposed to be opening his eyes, getting up, stretching from his sudden collapse. But there he was, his mind clearly fully conscious, but unable to wake up.

Ciel was trapped within his own mind.

No. Sebastian had to wake him up. The young master's temperature was growing unstable again, this time it was shooting straight up instead of plummeting downwards. His hands burned and swelled as if they'd burst into flames. His face was red and convulsed in pain, his breathing was shallow and too fast to keep up with his dragging heart rate. The tendons in his neck were twisted, sharpness and tensed up. No. No. What was going on in there...?!

* * *

Water.

Dark water.

The walls were grey and peeling. Black water pooled around him, rapidly rising to his waist. Picture frames were broken and punched in, the heavy, silk curtains were tattered and balled up, the lamps were shattered and torn and the ceiling swung with light bulbs that hung from single wires. Flower petals. White on red, white blood against red petals, red blood against white petals, and black, black everywhere. The water was slowly turning a sickly dark brown as the blood mixed with the black.

His clothes were totaled. Ripped, torn, stained with blood and ink and smelled of burnt hair and broken skin. He had a large gaping hole, a dark gash below his left eye. Black blood poured from the wound, thick, viscous, filling the folds of the remains of his clothes. A long jagged slash began from his left temple and extended all the way to his right jaw. It was thick and deep, the frayed skin tearing itself open as he trudged through the thick water, wincing and twisting in agony as the dirty water released liquid fire into his wounds.

His entire body was livid and convulsed in unbearable pain and shock. His lips trembled as tears rolled down his cheek, as his skin continued to peel away slowly, so horribly slowly. His shoulder was twisted at an unnatural angle and his legs grew weak and languish with every step.

The walls now turned a sickly yellow and smelled of rotten vegetation and raw fish. The water became a dark crimson that spattered and stained the walls and the cracked bulbs of lights rolled and swayed from left to right as if he were on a ship. Dead faceless people in the form of simply hulls of flesh floated above the red water, their limbs often dismembered.

A hand grabbed onto his ankle, refusing to let go. It dug its nails into his flesh, drawing blood. It began to tear at his tendons and muscles and in panic he clenched the figure by the hair and slammed her against the wall.

He froze. Recognition flooded his eyes as his lips trembled, and his face twisted in disbelief.

"Mother...?" The sullen word was caught in his scraped throat, he couldn't even fully articulate the second syllable.

But she was faceless. Her hair was the same, her body was the same. But her face was nothing, nothing but a squished, wrinkled mess of balled skin.

It was terrifying.

"_No_! No, please- _please..._! _Make it stop..._! I'm begging you, I want to die...!"

He crouched inwards covering his face with his bleeding hands and screamed and screamed, pleading for it to be over, for him to die, for everything to die.

But it wouldn't stop. It only grew worse. Shadows, elongated and torn, cast themselves savagely upon the rotting walls. Fingers, twisted and reddening broke through the ceiling connected to impossibly long limbs, their elbows sharp are knives. Remnants of torn bodies slowly multiplied until the water was completely hidden by ripped limbs upon limbs, skin upon skin.

It was simply horrifying.

Everywhere he turned, he was surrounded by this terror, this pain, this horrible unawakening.

Suddenly the blood evaporated away, as with the people, until the room became completely white.

Ciel breathed with relief and walked to a clear wall and slid down, wrapping his skinny arms around his knees. His wounds were gone but the agony remained, maybe even more prominent than before. It haunted him like a shadow looming above him, its dark two dimensional fingers holding him in place, just inches away from his sanity.

A woman appeared in the far end of the room. She was not his mother. She was a servant, dressed in rags. She walked towards him, her face even and emotionless.

When they were inches apart, she knelt down and patted his head lightly. Ciel was still frightened and froze, not daring to breath.

She smells of roses.

Her soft fingers caressed his cheek and she smiled politely.

"Underground. It is red like blood, black like death and white like life. He lives there. You will find him there. But you may never know why,"

As she smiles for one last time, her left hand strikes deep into his face like a knife.

She crushes his eye.

* * *

"Sebastian..."

He is tired and his eyelids flutter slightly before he fully opens them. The room is shaking, revolving unevenly. Ciel coughs bitterly several times before stretching his arms towards the blinding fluorescent ceiling lights that seem to glow green at the edges. The room was a pale green. It was supposed to feel soothing but Ciel simply wanted nothing more than to find a toilet bowl and give himself a good hurl.

The butler smiled politely and patted the young master's head. He bristled on instinct and slapped his hand away, maybe a little too harshly. Sebastian actually looked rather hurt this time.

"I am only trying to help, my lord. In all sincerity, I do not wish to harm you," He spoke softly.

"You know," He continued. " - I was actually quite concerned when you collapsed in the middle of the hall. I know a similar episode happened when you had had an unpleasant dream two nights ago, but maybe you should really see a doctor, my lord. You were not breathing for several minutes. Your health is my number one priority,"

Ciel grumbled and shook his head.

"There is nothing wrong with me, I am sure of it. Now we must stop wasting time and find a way to gain entry to the underground facilities. Madam Red, can you get us in there safely?"

"I'm not sure. I actually don't really even know of the underground entrances to this place. I never hear word of them unless something strange has happened,"

He sighed heavily and turned to Sebastian.

The butler smiled and nodded, telling him he would find an answer to their problems shortly. In a flash, Sebastian was out of sight.

Moments later, he returned, smiling triumphantly.

"My lord. I have discovered something very interesting. I would advise you to come with me,"

"Let me come too!" Madame Red insisted happily.

"Ah, I don't know. The place we are going to isn't well suited for ladies like yourself," Sebastian explained politely.

"Nonsense! I will have you know that I am a woman who can handle anything. I don't mind getting my hands dirty a bit, I am a part time surgeon after all..." She announced proudly.

"Well then. I suppose I cannot stop you. Please, come along,"

And so Madam Red happily followed Sebastian and the young master.

It wasn't long before her mood soon turned sour.

"You should have told me we were going inside the men's washroom. I wouldn't have come if I knew. Argh, the smell is simply preposterous...! Men and their _aims_. It's a wonder how there isn't any all over the walls..."

Sebastian chuckled and pointed to the long flat plane of mirror that faced them. He went over and knocked the surface lightly with his first two fingers. Ciel was silent and Madam Red was simply confused.

"I don't think it's the right time for games, Sebastian dear, why don't you explain to us what is going on?"

He smiled and directed his eyes at her.

"You see, Madam, this is a regular mirror. But listen carefully,"

The butler knocked the surface again, slightly harder this time.

There was a gentle clinking noise like the sound of wine glasses when they were, well, _clinked._

No reaction from his audience again. He sighed and decided to explain to them the phenomenon he just found.

"If you actually listened to the subtle vibration as my fingers had knocked into the mirror's surface, you would find that the timbre was a bit strange. The sound resonates for a couple seconds longer than it should. This means..."

He struck the mirror with his left arm and it shattered into pieces revealing a large dark gaping hole in the wall.

"...What lies behind it, must be hollow," He replied pleasantly.

The tunnel was incredibly deep, it was too deep to see any kind of light illuminating from within. It was pitch black and there was an unmistakable scent of the rose.

Ciel shivered and bit his lip from a sudden painful flashback into his previous nightmare.

"I say we go inside and investigate. We are sure to find some clues underground. What do you say, my lord?"

Ciel Phantomhive grumbled as usual and mumbled what must be done might as well be done quickly. He gave a reluctant consent.

"Well, then. Ladies first,"

Madam Red chuckled nervously.

"Dear Sebastian, surely you don't mean me..."

"I don't see any other women here. And you might as well go in first. You _are _in a men's room after all. Wouldn't it be embarrassing if some men were to come in and find you...?"

She flushed red and nodded quickly, picking up her dress and heaved herself up and into the dark tunnel. A brilliant flash of crimson danced as the folds of her dress swirled and then fell backwards as she crawled in. Then Ciel crept in with help of his careful butler. Sebastian gracefully went inside last to ensure the safety of his guest and young master.

After all, a butler who can't even do that much is certainly not worth his salt.


	6. Chapter Six : Startling Discovery

A/N: Hello! I'm back :D There's just one more week before the winter holidays! Woohoo! Finally a break from the endless cycle of homework I am plagued with, with every passing day... I can't wait! Special thanks to promocat and Silvia Grace for continuing to review. I'm psyched that you guys are liking the story as much as I am :)

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Chapter Six: Startling Discovery

"It's awfully dark in here..."

The three of them were down on their knees, crouched in a very uncomfortable position. The tunnel wasn't getting any larger, in fact, quite the contrary, it seemed it's circumference was actually _shrinking _the further they went. The ground was definitely made of some kind of granite, it's rough bumpy texture lined the narrow walls around them, even the ceiling. It was very painful for the knees, the hard outline of the rocks digging ruthlessly into the bone. Madam Red would occasionally hit her head into the constantly changing height of the ceiling and Ciel didn't know what was worse, the suffocating darkness of their surroundings or his irritating aunt's constant shrieking. He just hoped they weren't heading towards a dead end. He was ready to vomit from the thick smells of blood and urine anyway.

"Madam, I recall you saying that you could handle anything. Just a bit of darkness never killed anyone, no? "

"You would be surprised, Sebastian dear..." She muttered groggily.

The amount of blood that had been drawn from her head from repeatedly crashing into the stupidly low ceiling was making her terribly woozy. She could barely think straight now. Oh, well. At least the blood on her head was the same color as her hair. If she was going to collapse from blood loss at least she'd be doing it in style. And style was a very important thing on the list for a lady like herself.

It was damp and moist in the tunnel as well as it was rather cold. Water seemed to be leaking from the cracks in the walls and from their smell it wasn't likely it was just regular drinking water. Ciel glared at the darkness. Never had he felt so low in life. And no, he did not just make a pun.

Or maybe he did. He was just too furious to care.

"Sebastian..." He spat impatiently.

"Yes, my lord?" A smooth voice replied from behind him.

"The darkness is crippling. Do something about it," He muttered haggardly.

"Of course,"

There was a quick flick of the hand and suddenly the tunnel was awash in a muted yellow glow from a few matches held expertly from Sebastian's carefully gloved fingers. There were collected sighs of relief and contentment that soon followed.

"Sebastian, if you touch a thread of my clothes with those flames-

"-Understood, my lord,"

Ciel Phantomhive coughed, disliking the fact he was interrupted by his butler.

"Or any part of my body for that matter,"

A couple amused chuckles resonated from Sebastian's pursed lips.

"Of course,"

A moment of silence followed, save for the rough friction of knees against granite and quite groans of annoyance. Then Madam Red sighed dramatically, narrowly avoiding ramming into the low ceiling for the umpteenth time.

"I just don't understand. If you detested the darkness so much why didn't you say so earlier?"

"Well," Ciel replied thoughtfully. " - I may have been able to get my point across quicker, if you hadn't been screeching like an old crow _every five bloody minutes..._!"

"Young master, please learn to control your temper. It hasn't been an issue for you until the past few days-

"Resume patronizing me about manners when I actually give a damn..." He retorted flatly.

"Oh, Ciel dear, surely I wasn't screaming every five minutes..." She chuckled nervously.

"You would be surprised..." The young master grumbled tiredly.

The Madam sighed heavily and continued on with gritted teeth until she felt a dip in the path and with a sudden shriek she was sent plummeting several feet into darkness. The other two soon followed after her.

The wind rushed furiously last their ears and their screams echoed from wall to wall, as the tunnel sudden gained circumference with rapid multiplication. They tumbled faster and faster as all the world became a total blur. The matches had burned themselves completely from the speed of their falling and now they were but ashes.

They hit the ground with a sickening thud and if it weren't for the strangely soft material beneath them, they may have broken at least a few bones. Ciel grumbled groggily and pressed the ground with his fingertips. It had an interesting elasticity, like a trampoline. A flashback of a circus coursed through his mind, but he quickly dismissed the thought. They had solved that case, ages ago. It couldn't bother them now.

Sebastian got up quickly, gracefully, completely unscathed. He looked around and was silent for several minutes. Then his eyes widened in the shallow darkness.

"There is a soft scent of roses in that direction. My lord?"

Ciel coughed and picked himself upright, stretching towards the now enormously tall ceiling.

He nodded, gesturing for them to head that way.

"Let's see what we can find. Hopefully we will have better luck this time,"

So the three of them stumbled along the uneven path, save for Sebastian who always managed to do everything with a terrifying perfection. It was starkly lit with small lanterns that gave off a cold greenish glow, casting a sickening atmosphere to the rusty white walls. Doors lined these walls, all of which were locked but with the mysterious and careful inspection of the butler, appeared to be empty as well.

What was the point of locking empty doors? A strange feeling crept in Ciel's blood. He felt that maybe what lay behind the doors might not be as empty as Sebastian anticipated. It was just a feeling, but it lingered with him like a bad smell.

"Sebastian. What exactly are you looking for...?" The young master inquired skeptically.

The butler smiled, the pale lights lining the contours of his face in a rather ghastly way.

"It would be troublesome to unlock every closed door, my lord. I would like to find doors that are already opened, for our convenience. With that in consideration, the scent of roses is also the strongest in that door, farthest from our left," He replied quietly.

When they reached that door, sure as it was, it was opened with the slightest of cracks, the hinges just a tiny bit out of place. The door was sparsely lined with dark dried blood but it didn't smell like human's blood, actually it smelled a bit animal-like. There was the definite scent of roses, but it was also mixed with the peculiar smell of liquor, or some kind of strong alcohol. It's bitter, sour odor was worse than vinegar left to stink in a humid kitchen filled with rotting meat. A faint picture of Bard crawled into Ciel's mind. Ugh. That so-called cook was probably capable of burning _water._

When they entered the room, slipping through the small gap of space the heavy door left them when Sebastian propped it open.

Immediately a searing fume of excruciatingly painful tear gas pierced their eyes and they rapidly tried to wipe it out of their sockets as they felt a tangle of limbs handle them roughly and throw them deeper into the thick fog. The room was warm and the ground was slick with unidentifiable liquids. They were dragged along the floor until they hit something hard and painful, several small rusted bars of iron crisscrossing here and there. There was barely enough space to move. The gas became too powerful and all they could do was fall victim to its fumes as they slowly lost sight of everything.

* * *

It must have been several hours before the gas had finally evaporated. The criminals who had hulled them into their suffocating cages were long gone. There were others in cages as well, all woman who were dressed in rags. Ciel jolted from the memory of the woman who had struck her hand deep into his eye. Then he felt around his face and realized he had probably have been imagining it. He had both his eyes and his face was fine, except for a few small scratches, from leaning his head into some of the jagged bars when he had been unconscious.

Madam Red and Sebastian were uninjured, just maybe a bit groggy and tired. The Madam looked worse than Ciel had wanted to imagine, she had actually hit her head quite hard against the rocks when they had been crawling through that irritably minuscule tunnel. Thick patches of blood lined not only her head, but also her forehead which was also badly cut. The bleeding hadn't stopped, in fact, their humid conditions were actually making it worse. He was beginning to regret the rude things he had said to her. Ciel sighed and unbuttoned his coat and tore off a sleeve of his white collared shirt.

"We don't have any antiseptics at hand, for the moment, but I think we should at least try to stop the bleeding as much as possible..." He muttered as he awkwardly tried to tie the frayed sliver of cloth around his aunt's forehead.

After failing to tie it properly because of his blistered fingers, Sebastian offered to help, first picking out any debris or clumps of dirt that had fallen into her open wounds and then wrapping the ripped sleeve expertly one and a half times around before making a firm knot on the side of her head. He smiled politely when she thanked him for his kindness.

"Ciel, my dear nephew, it seems we got caught. Now what do you suppose we do now...?"

"Well, this is a room that holds a lot of information for our investigation. Maybe getting caught wasn't the bane of our lives, at least not for the moment. Getting out of the cage is just a matter of Sebastian's regular handiwork. Isn't that right, Sebastian?"

"I couldn't agree more, my lord. After all, look who is in the cage right next to ours..."

His mouth was sealed shut with bloodied cloth and his hands and feet were also tied together. But looking at his signature gold-lined clothing, and thin slivers of eyes, it was most definitely-

"Lau...? What are _you _doing here...?!" Madam Red complained irritably.

She went over and untied the cloth that cloth that covered the lower half of his face. The man coughed several times before smiling slyly at the other three who were in simular conditions except they weren't tied up.

"What do you mean? I'm working on the investigation Ciel Phantomhive had been talking about yesterday. It's a good thing you're here. I think I have gathered some information that you may want to know..."


	7. Chapter Seven : Quiet Suspicions

A/N: Ah, the winter holidays are finally here :) Strange though, I am sure that I slept for more than ten hours last night and yet I felt more tired today than I usually do. I wonder why. :/ Anyways, so I moved through the day in a zombie like phase and yes, with a zombie like pace I finally updated :). I would just like to take a moment to appreciate my kind reviewers. You guys are wonderful *-*

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Chapter Seven: Quiet Suspicions

"Where _were _you this morning...?" The young master demanded irritably.

Lau only grinned, chuckling, the light in his eyes dancing with mockery.

"I arrived there at half past eight-

"-We _decided _as a group to meet at _half past nine-_

"-Don't you know the saying '_the early bird always gets the worm_'...?"

Ciel sighed heavily and waved it off. The four of them were seated, if not a bit uncomfortably, around a cheap white plastic table that smelt unpleasant and was covered in stains of ugly colors. They were locked in this room, but it wasn't really an issue. Sebastian could fix that in the blink of an eye. For now, they simply wanted to hear what Lau seemed so anxious to share with them.

"Nevertheless, I would still like to know whatever information you have acquired..." He grumbled tiredly.

"Very well. Seeing that you are a rather impatient child, I'll get straight to the point. I have a strong suspicion on who the culprit of both these cases are,"

Ciel Phantomhive's eyes lit up and immediately his face showed a look of utter amazement and quiet gratitude. Maybe it was the smells that were messing with him but right now, in this moment, he felt they were finally onto something.

"Lau. Proceed immediately," He demanded enthusiastically.

The man grinned, chuckling amusingly.

"You're not even going to _question _my judgment...? Knowing that the Chinese are experts at lying, you must be feeling quite bold, or should I say...terribly _desperate_..." He snickered.

The young master huffed with agitation and threw his hands in the air with frustration.

"Resume mocking me after you have proved your..._theory..._" He scoffed quietly.

"Well, I suppose we should get started-

"-We should have gotten started _ten minutes ago_...!" Madam Red shrieked irritably.

"Madam...! Please watch your temper. Now I understand where the young master gets his attitude from...am I correct, my lord?"

"_Shut up_, Sebastian." Was the only reply.

After observing that everyone was too exasperated to interrupt him anymore, Lau finally decided to continue.

"Well then. I would like to say that there were three specific events that lead me to my conclusion on a possible suspect of this case, but of course, some of my personal feelings are also involved in this conjecture, so you may want to be wary of that..."

"So you're saying that your theory is not _entirely _based on cold, hard facts...?" Ciel sighed heavily.

"Precisely. I agree that this is most definitely unfortunate, but you must forgive it when your personal life mixes with that of business...sometimes it just can't be helped..." Lau lamented in mock misery.

"Alright. No matter. Tell us about it anyway. Your intuition may not be as inaccurate as we might think. You _are _Chinese after all..."

The man smiled flatly, seemingly hiding something.

"What exactly are you _implying..._?" He inquired carefully, his grin growing wider.

Ciel shook his head. Lau was impossible.

"Nothing. Just go on,"

He nodded, but he didn't seem to want to pick up the pace. He liked the way things were moving now, nice and slow...

As the minutes ticked away, their goal was slowly floating further and further away from shore. He smiled. The tension was intoxicating.

"When I walked inside of the Royal Hospital, there was something that immediately caught my attention. You see, there were some Chinese fishermen that were in the hall, delivering their goods to the main office. One of them was in a very heated conversation, possibly an argument, with one of the nurses in the hospital. The nurse was Caucasian, of course. The fishermen was very angry, complaining that his co-workers were never returning alive from their long trips at sea. The sea-faring goods they gathered from their errands were for medical use and the largest company they had an ally with currently, was the Royal Hospital. It was only second nature to suspect the people they delivered to were up to something,"

"So you think a suspect may be one of nurses working at the Royal Hospital?" Ciel interjected skeptically.

There was a pause.

"...No. Wait for me to explain the other two events, if you would be so kind..."

The young master did his best to remain patient.

"- Anyway, as I walked away from this unexpected outburst, I noticed some more interesting things. The other fishermen were simply walking, not doing anything rude, but several nurses appeared very afraid of them. When they handed the goods they had obtained from the ships full of dead sailors, the servants wouldn't even brush fingers with them. I thought this was most interesting. Another thing-

"-So you think these fishermen killed the nurses-

"-_No_, I do not. Dear _Madam_, please control your impatience and wait for me to _finish _my point. If I am so often interrupted I don't see why I should help you lot at all. _Clearly _you people want to solve this case _on your own_..."

Ciel's eyes widened. Lau actually seemed to be rather upset. Hmph. Well, he deserved it. He was dragging this conversation like a dead body.

"Alright, Lau. We won't interrupt you anymore. With that said, please get to your point faster,"

"Just listen carefully and I won't have to change the pace at all. The last event was what finally convinced me of my suspicions. There was a Chinese fishermen who bumped into me while I was heading to the restroom and he was in a rather terrible mood. He wouldn't even apologize for almost knocking me into the wall. He was too deep in anger about his employer. He complained that his boss was punishing his workers quite violently for returning with either not sufficient goods because they refused to travel far into the ocean, or they simply wanted to quit their jobs. And _no, _I am _not _suspecting the _employer _of that man..." Lau muttered quite agitated.

"Lau. You are quite unlike yourself today. What is your problem...?!" Ciel demanded.

Lau glared at him briefly before shaking his head and sighing.

"Do you smell this _horrendous _odor...? This, this, terrible mix of liquor and roses. It reminds me too well of my uncle from my mother's side. I hate that man. He also happens to be the person I suspect to be behind this case,"

Ciel scoffed and grumbled irritably.

"Lau, you can't just suspect someone out of hatred and desire for vengeance..."

"It is _not _entirely based on hatred. These three events prove that it _has _to be him...!" He protested indignantly.

"Oh really? Please enlighten me on this subject." The young master sighed skeptically.

"Firstly, my uncle is the head of the company that was delivering the goods to the hospital. If his workers suspect the nurses were planning something, he may be taking revenge on them by killing them in the same way. The frightened reactions of many other nurses were quite severe which shows that someone among these sailors must be secretly harming them in some form."

He waited for this information to sink in. Then he continued.

"Lastly, although my uncle was not the employer of that fisherman, that employer _works_ for him. He could be following orders from my uncle to kill some of the sailors while they were on their long trips at sea to keep fear burned in the minds of the other workers. It's a difficult time in Beijing after all. The factory explosion is making everyone quite disruptive and ill at ease. Fear controls people fairly well,"

Sebastian smiled faintly.

"While your points are valid, there are holes in your arguments. How can you be _sure _of any of this? You are perceiving all these events in the way that you _want _to see them. The nurses could simply be afraid of the fishermen because they are foreign men and they could be dangerous. People say things they don't really mean out of anger. The fisherman you talked with could have been stretching the truth because our eyesight is often obstructed by red when we are enraged. Finally, the argument between the nurse and the fisherman could simply be out of prejudice. Our trading alliance between the Chinese is at a crisis at the moment because their people are being mysteriously killed,"

Lau remained quiet, listening to the butler's every word. Then he sighed and widened his eyes slightly. He looked quite ominous like this.

"While you are correct, I would like to know if you and your lot have any suspicions of the culprit...?"

Ciel coughed bitterly and glared at the man.

"While we have none at the moment, being hasty is never a good thing. We might miss important information that will be crucial for us to solve this case. For example, what about the strange behavior of the animals coming out of the bamboo forest? How would you explain that? Is your uncle also secretly a _sorcerer _who can control the actions of beasts? And what about the strange method of killing the sailors? Pouring boiling water into their faces? Why would your uncle choose that specific way of killing them? That is not conventional at all,"

"My uncle is a strange man. That would not be unusual for him at all. I am still convinced of my suspicion," Lau declared stubbornly.

"Well, then. What do we suppose we do?" Ciel grumbled tiredly.

"We travel to Beijing. We meet with my uncle. Then maybe I can convince you of my theory,"

The young master was frowning and glaring at the floor.

"I detest traveling. I loathe unnecessary traveling even more. What happens if you are wrong...?"

"You earn a patent that gives the right for me to be your personal slave for a week,"

"I already have a slave," Ciel snorted flatly.

"Slaves are like shoes, Ciel dear. There is nothing wrong with having another once you already have one" Madam Red chuckled.

"Well, obviously. You have two feet. You can't just have _one _shoe..."

The Madam sighed and shook her head. While she hated agreeing with Lau, the stench in this room was seriously messing with her mind.

"Alright. We'll go to Beijing. Are you _happy _now, Lau...?" Ciel spat under his breath.

The man brightened up and grinned.

"You accept my suggestion? Very well, then. Let's go right away,"

Ciel shrugged, consenting reluctantly.

"Anything to be rid of this horribly smelly room. And this plastic chair makes my bum sore..."

So it was decided.

But when Sebastian was making his way to the locked door, Lau stopped him.

"I think it's best we use a different path for travel. I am not very familiar with this underground facility. I don't know how we can get back into the upper level of the hospital. However, I am quite familiar with an alternative route in these underground passageways. See, I have been here when I was quite young so I know the quickest route to Beijing,"

"And yet you can't find your way back out of here...?" Sebastian questioned, amused.

"No...See, my childhood friends would be quite mean, they would tie me up and stuff me into a sack and throw me down here. I could never find my way back up but I know how to get to basically everywhere else,"

"You have some wonderful friends. And there is chance that _they_ could have been the ones that locked us in here...?" Sebastian inquired calmly.

"Quite likely, yes,"

"And they could possibly be the reason you ended down here to start with...?"

"Again, you are as sharp as a needle, Sebastian,"

Ciel sighed.

"Well, this is getting weirder and weirder. We best be on our way. By the way, how did your childhood friends find you after all this time...?"

Lau paused and took a moment to wonder about the possibilities.

"Who knows? Let that be a mystery for another day,"


	8. Chapter Eight: Difficult Traveling

A/N: Ah, it's Christmas Eve :) This reminds of the days when I still believed in Santa Claus :3 Just going to wish my awesome reviewers promocat, Silivia Grace, Tosco Thor Cat and haruda an early Merry Christmas! You guys have been very supportive and I appreciate it greatly :) Enjoy!

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Chapter Eight: Difficult Traveling

"I thought you _knew_ where you were going..."

The four of them had stopped walking. They were faced with three equally dark and mysterious looking tunnels. Lau just stood grinning, but the others could discern his well hidden anxiety. The way his usual smirk was wavering at the edges confirmed their suspicions.

"Well, you must understand, Ciel Phantomhive, I haven't been here for ages-

"Liar. You are part of the Eastern Trading Branch. You could have been here _yesterday_..."

"Yes, well, sometimes the roads that once were familiar to you suddenly disappear from your mind..."

The young master looked like he wanted to die. His furious expression was horrifying.

"Sebastian..."

The butler quickly rushed to his side after examining the structure of the ground they walked on.

"Yes, my lord? "

"You seem untroubled. Perhaps you know how to get to Beijing...?"

"Ah, young master, I-

"There is no need for that," An unfamiliar, gruff voice spoke.

They turned to behold a middle aged man strolling out of the tunnel in the middle. He was of Oriental Asian descent. He was holding a lantern that illuminated his features rather grotesquely. He had a broadly wrinkled face, a thin mustache with several grey hairs, coal black eyes and severe eyebrows. His eyes flickered with the muted orange glow from the light.

Lau snorted and looked at the ground irritably.

"Uncle. What are you doing here...?"

The man smiled politely and chuckled, his features softened by his expression.

"Oh, just an afternoon stroll. The chemicals in Beijing are getting quite unbearable. I'm starting to believe the air down here might be more fresh..."

Madam Red laughed, a gentle sound that echoed around the walls. The man, Lau's uncle as it turned out, noticed the rest of the lot and strolled over to meet them.

"Well! You must be Lau's friends! You are all quite the lookers...! Especially, you, dear Madam. Your crimson attire looks simply beautiful. In fact, I have a little something to complete the look..."

The man reached into his pocket to produce a rose, of the deepest, purest azure. He chuckled and smiled apologetically.

"Ah, it's blue, not red. That won't do, now won't it...?" He mumbled to himself.

Madam Red smiled softly and shook her head.

"No, it's perfectly fine. It's a very beautiful flower. May I keep it?"

The man smiled warmly, nodding.

"By all means. Oh, did you know it's naturally blue? Roses of this color can only be found in China,"

The Madam looked impressed. Lau looked bitter. Then Madam Red turned to her nephew and bent down to his eye level and smiled.

"You are wearing all blue today. How about you wear the rose?"

"I'll do no such thing," Ciel declared stubbornly.

Lau's mood was beginning to brighten.

"Sebastian, please keep the rose for further examining,"

The butler bowed, placing a hand over his heart.

"Yes, my lord," He replied, carefully taking the flower into his fingers and trimmed the stem so it fit perfectly into his jacket pocket.

"Now, you poor lot seem lost. Would you like me to guide you through to Beijing? I'm going to head back now anyway,"

"That would be wonderful. Please, by all means," Sebastian chimed pleasantly.

So off they went with Lau's uncle in the lead. Time seemed to pass much faster, especially with the occasional good natured jokes that the man would make. Ciel smiled. He hadn't had a good laugh in ages. Things seemed to be looking for the better.

Soon enough they were looking at a winding, steel ladder that stopped at an opening at the ceiling of the suddenly immense tunnel. Madam Red blinked. She did not like heights one bit, but the ladder was sturdy, right? Eh, it was just matter of climbing all the way up and then getting out of this suffocating tunnel.

"Ah, hold on. Please, wear these before you climb. The air is horribly contaminated out there,"

Lau's uncle handed each one of them a stark white face mask and instructed them to secure it firmly, but not too tightly to the point that breathing was uncomfortable. He also wore one himself.

"This doesn't prevent all the fumes from entering your respiratory system, but it is a lot better than simply breathing it all in, right? Don't worry, we can recline at my apartment. The air is decent there. It is not too far from here, perhaps a fifteen minutes walk. Alright, let's get a move on,"

Lau was the first one up and out of the tunnel. He moved lightly and easily, lithe like a feline. His uncle followed, slower, weighed down by age. Ciel then went after him, climbing at a steady rate. Then when he got to the middle, he started to feel winded. His forehead suddenly pulsed and burned with a heavy, suffocating pain. Ugh. What was wrong with him...? He grit his teeth and tighter his grip to the steel bars and pulled himself up the rest of the way.

Madam Red chuckled nervously and gestured for Sebastian to go ahead of her.

"I will be the last to go up the ladder. Madam, I need to ensure the safety of my guests, yourself included,"

She smiled.

"Sebastian dear, you really are too kind..."

She took a deep breath and did her best to not look green in the face as she dragged herself up the horribly rusting ladder. The sound of her heels advancing bar after bar, echoed terribly noisily throughout the tunnel. She sighed and mumbled she was getting too old for these intense mysteries. She stopped near the top to wipe sweat from her brow and wincing when blood mixed in with it. Then the Madam was finally out of the underground.

The butler smiled and raced up the steps, swiftly joining the rest of them.

Outside of the underground, the air was certainly contaminated to say the least. Everything was smothered in a thick pasty yellow. The fog was strong and it reeked of horrid chemicals. It made Ciel's eyes water profusely. Sebastian scolded him for rubbing his eyes. It would only make it worse.

Whether it was fifteen minutes or fifteen hours when they finally arrived at Lau's uncle apartment was uncertain. The fog, or smog as he called it, was ridiculously overpowering, and it made Ciel's stomach twist with convulsions and his mind screamed to be rid of it all. Several times, he contemplated returning to London and giving up on the wretched case. But his stubbornness always convinced him otherwise. No, he couldn't back out now. He was so close. He could solve this bloody case and retire back to his comfortable manor soon enough.

"The air is definitely more fresh here," Madam Red chuckled, when they were inside of the apartment.

"Please, follow me. I live on the third floor. Our elevator is currently going through construction. Let's take the stairs instead,"

"But the elevator looks perfectly fine," The young master protested indignantly.

"Ah, looks can be deceiving, Ciel Phantomhive. This elevator is famous for killing six of its passengers just last week,"

Madam Red's eyes widened.

"How does it do that?"

"Ah, when people try to leave the elevator, it will slam in on them when they are only part way through. It crushes their bones to bits and leaves quite a bloody mess of flesh if I do say so myself,"

"How can you speak of such a thing so lightly...?" The young master demanded irritably.

Lau's uncle looked at the floor and his eyes seemed to grow distant.

"I've witnessed the exact scene. My wife died two days ago from this,"

He fell silent and would not speak of it any longer. They advanced up the steps and the only sounds were the slapping of their stagnant footsteps. The cold cement gave off an echo that felt dead, lifeless.

He unlocked the seven locks on his door as the Londoners eyes bugged out of their heads.

He looked at their dumbfounded expressions and chuckled.

"As you can see, Chinese people have serious trust issues..."

"I must agree," Madam Red spoke, glaring at Lau.

The suite was decently furnished. There was a lot of red and yellow throughout the room, the slightly transparent crimson curtains, partly closed, the gold religious figures, the lavishly designed vases of various sizes kept in a glass compartment. Most of the furniture from the chairs to the tables to the long sofa was made of dark, rich wood, with expensive red cushions placed carefully on top. The walls were adorned with beautiful watercolor works of lovely birds and brightly colored carp fish. There was a muted golden glow to the room, it was probably the way the light was being cast in.

To the far left of the room was a book shelf, severely organized with books that were color coded perfectly, not a paper out of place. A large plate of ripe oranges and pink skinned apples was set in the center of the dinner table. Small red candles surrounded the plate, giving off a sweet, spicy aroma.

"Your home is very lovely," Madam Red noted, admiring the delicately decorated vases.

One of them was depicting a breathtakingly realistic painting of a forest in the midst of a brilliant autumn. Distant mountains, clouds and small birds dotted the background. The craftsmanship was incredible.

"Thank you, dear Madam. I work hard to make my living quarters habitable. Your kindness is greatly appreciated," He replied happily.

He looked at his guests who were still awkwardly standing at the door.

"Oh, please make yourselves comfortable! Come, have a seat. I am expecting guests here today anyway..."

Everyone took a seat on a cushion at the dark wooden sofa. Sebastian took note of the high quality of the wooden furniture and went on to ask the young master if he wished to have such furniture imported for his manor. Ciel shook his head, agreeing that the wood was very beautiful, but it did not suit his Western tastes. The butler nodded and decided to use the time to examine the blue rose he had received some time earlier.

"Kai! Come out of your room to meet our guests!" Lau's uncle called.

"I am not finished studying!" The returning reply protested.

Judging from the pitch in the voice, the boy wasn't much older than Ciel, in fact, he might even be younger.

"Lau Kai Fong! You're being impolite to our guests...! Come out of your room!" He ordered.

A reluctant sigh was all that was heard. Silence.

"Kai-

"-Okay! Okay! I'm coming..."

Soon after a skinny Chinese boy with soft features and clean black hair stumbled over in sock feet. He was shorter than Ciel and he was probably younger too, possibly only nine or ten. He had a very cute face with warm brown eyes and it appeared that his baby fat only accumulated in his chubby cheeks. Madam Red was fawning over him immediately and giving him candy and gumballs. The boy was not used to the attention and was very happy to oblige and went over to the dinner table, coming back to offer her a pretty orange. She smiled and slipped the fragrant fruit into her purse for later.

"Well, you look like you're enjoying yourself," Lau muttered quietly.

"Oh, Lau, your cousin is so adorable! He is the sweetest little boy...!"

Ciel Phantomhive was unimpressed, beginning to sulk silently with Lau. It was not his nature to get jealous. What was the matter with him...?

Before a second thought could cross his mind, two knocks omitted from the thick wooden door. Lau's uncle walked over and smiled when he saw who it was. Several men came in and two woman followed.

"It seems our guests have arrived! Ciel Phantomhive, meet my two nephews and their wonderful wives! The rest of these men are simply friends from work,"

Soon the room felt a bit crowded. The guests of Lau's uncle were very fond of talking and perhaps gossiping. Ciel didn't mind too much. It just irritated him that he didn't know what they were talking about.

"Mr. Lau-

"Please call me Lau Fong, Ciel. You don't need to address me so formally,"

The young master shrugged.

"Alright. Well, then. Lau Fong, I don't mean to be rude but I would like to ask of a favor,"

"No problem. Go on,"

"Well, I am here in Beijing because of a certain murder case. I would like to know if there is any information you or your guests could give upon the factory explosion and the slaughtering of sailors,"

Lau Fong smiled thoughtfully and nodded.

"You are at the right place. I will tell you everything I know. But for now, let's enjoy some rice wine and liquor, what do you say?"

"I am underage. I cannot drink alcohol," Ciel argued.

"Ah, rice wine is harmless in small amounts. A common breakfast around here is boiled eggs served in warm rice wine!"

"Sebastian..."

"He is correct, my lord. The level of alcohol is very low. You would have to drink several bowls of it to even get the slightest bit winded,"

Ciel sighed and accepted, sipping the liquid tentatively.

It had the bitter tang of alcohol but it was heavily sweetened and actually didn't taste half-bad.

"How is it, my lord? "

"It's actually alright. I can adjust to the taste,"

"Wonderful,"

With that they conversed into the night as the sun sank below the mountains.


	9. Chapter Nine : Frustrating Events

A/N: I'm sorry if this chapter is not very eventful :/ I promise to make the next one more interesting :) It's my dad's birthday today :) I'm thinking of writing something for him, maybe a poem or something. I wish my reviewers promocat, Silvia Grace, Tosca Thor Cat and haruda and of course my readers an early Happy New Year :D

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Chapter Nine: Frustrating Events

Ciel Phantomhive was silent as his mind swam with confusing thoughts. He had retired into one of the surprisingly comfortable bedrooms of Lau Fong's suite. He couldn't really think straight at the moment, but he had a feeling it wasn't only the alcohol he had consumed. He was a responsible individual who took care to control his own actions for the most part, and Ciel was certain he didn't drink more than two or three bowls.

Didn't Lau's uncle say that rice wine only contained a very small amount of alcohol? So little it should be harmless? Now, he didn't particularly like Lau either, but he had a feeling that man knew what he was talking about when he said that China was full of liars. That sneaking bastard of an uncle must have been lying after all.

Ciel had an uneasy feeling about Lau Fong from the beginning but the thing was, they needed to find proof that he was the culprit of this crime. But even though his mind was a mess he still knew it made absolutely no sense to kill your own workers when your company was already at a crisis. Fear fed upon fear. Soon enough the entire business would collapse.

And that Sebastian. Didn't that butler promise that he would never _lie_ to him...? Wait. Hold it. Knowing the way that Sebastian was, he probably managed to find some kind of loophole in this circumstance. Hmm. He said that the level of alcohol was very low. But he must have meant the amount of alcohol in the bowl, which was very small, so of course, it wouldn't be very much. He also said it would take several bowls of it to get the slightest bit winded. Putting the size of the bowls into consideration, that much was probably true.

Ugh. Ciel buried his tired face into a large cotton pillow as he lay sprawled on his stomach, his fingers digging into the wrinkles of the soft blue bed sheets. The bed itself was terribly stiff. The matching blue pillow case had fancy embroidery of orange blossoms and small red roses. Roses. That's right. He took another whiff of the plump pillow and sure enough a distinct scent of that flower entered his nostrils.

He hurled the wretched pillow across the room. It was giving him a headache. Now, he didn't mind it when women wore perfume that was very subtle and understated but that, that horrible pillow was like those old women who always passed by him when he was in town, reeking strongly of that _terrible _flower called fuchsia. How was it that they just couldn't comprehend that such a sharp, infectiously horrid scent drew men _away_ and not _to_ them. Ugh. Women.

Oh, yes. That just reminded him. Madam Red was currently awfully _happy _about their trip to China. She was enjoying herself splendidly. Huh. Maybe Lau Fong was terribly fond of foreign women. Maybe they were the only people that he felt he could be honest with. If Ciel could remember clearly, there was not a time when Lau's uncle had remotely lied to Madam Red.

He coughed indignantly. Well, that aunt of his might actually be of use now. Clearly, she was the only one on their team who had any actual power here. He would talk to her about this now.

"Sebastian..." He grumbled as his covered eye flickered pale violet.

The butler was at his side before he could blink his eye, silently and gracefully.

"Yes, my lord...?"

"I never liked that Lau Fong person and I am beginning to suspect that he may be a snake in the grass. While Lau has his own personal vendetta with this man for reasons I am currently unconcerned about, I am starting to think he may have a valid point..."

Sebastian smiled faintly and straightened his waistcoat, running a delicately gloved hand through his coal black hair. Then he bent down to Ciel's eye level.

"What do you propose, sir...?" He whispered quietly, his eyes glinting slightly murderously.

"Ah, I just wish we could find evidence that Lau Fong is the murderer. Then we can be back to our usual days,"

Sebastian grinned, chuckling amusingly.

"Don't you detest boredom though, my lord?"

Ciel scoffed and averted his eyes to the walls.

"I could use some boredom sometimes...Anyhow, call Madam Red to come over here and talk with me,"

"For-?"

"Don't question my actions. I know what I am doing," Ciel ordered irritably.

"Of course. Please forgive me for my rudeness. She will be here momentarily,"

He disappeared as quickly as he had come, leaving nothing but a scent of roses behind. Ugh. It was rubbing off onto Sebastian too. When they got back to his manor, both of them would take a long, warm bath to get rid if this horrid smell. An image flashed through his mind, quick but not unnoticed and Ciel flushed red and shook his head. No. Not together. Obviously.

What was up with that rice wine...? It was seriously messing with his mind.

Moments later, Madam Red quietly turned the knob of the door and let herself in. She smiled sympathetically at her irritated nephew and went over to smooth the strands of hair that had fallen over his eyes. Ciel was lying on his back now and staring at the ceiling, though the canopy of the bed covered it. He looked troubled and frankly, a bit sick to his stomach.

"Ciel dear. What is it that you want to talk about?"

The young master sighed and cleared his throat.

"I am having doubts about our host, Madam Red," He muttered quietly.

"Oh, whatever for? Lau Fong seems like a very polite and respectful man and his son is a very sweet boy...!" She exclaimed with bright eyes.

"Looks can be deceiving. Lau Fong said it himself, if you remember. But I can understand your point. There is no obvious reason he would murder his own workers and then murder a bunch of servants who work in the underground medical facilities. He would simply be causing a serious problem for himself when his company is already at a crisis..." Ciel trailed off.

"Then why do you suspect him?" She inquired calmly.

He covered his face with his hands, taking in the scent of his fingers. Even _he_ was beginning to smell like roses. At this rate _all_ of them would look like suspects...!

"I just have this very uneasy feeling about him. It is an instinctive thing of mine and once it hits me it lingers like a bad smell. He seems a bit too perfect in his actions; he is very cordial, joyful and good tempered but I have a creeping sensation that this is only a mask that hides his true nature. Not only that but his home smells of roses, and a bit of liquor as well. He wouldn't tell me any information about the case we're working on. He just tried to get me drunk -as if he were trying to _delay_ me or something..."

Madam Red chuckled softly and mussed his hair as Ciel grumbled groggily.

"Well, I think it's best if you don't psychoanalyze things all the time. If you would just relax-

"_Madam-_

"-Ah, wait for me to finish, Ciel dear! I was just chatting with Lau Fong and I easily twisted the subject onto the case that we are working on. You wouldn't believe how much he knows on the subject! See, when he-

"-Do me a favor and quit _praising _that deceitful bastard..." Ciel interrupted angrily, crossing his thin arms.

"Ciel dear, please quiet down. What if he hears us...?"

He sighed, shaking his head.

"Good point. Wouldn't want him to get the wrong idea about us, now wouldn't we...?" He muttered, partially to himself.

"Exactly. Now then, I shall continue! See, Beijing currently has a very serious chemical problem. This pollution is quite dangerous for the mental health of these citizens. The workers complain of constant aching headaches, hallucinations, sudden pain in the joints, all kinds of things. It is just dreadful...!"

"Madam, please get to the point! You are starting to act like Lau..."

The Madam scoffed and shook her head, scolding her nephew to remain patient.

"When the sailors were being murdered overseas, all types of theories began to circle around Lau Fong's business. Someone said the murderer on the ship was so heavily affected by the chemicals in the factories he had a tendency to kill the sailors as a way to distract himself from the horrible hallucinations. Another said that the murderer was different every time and it was actually a sailor that wanted to relieve everyone of the constant pain they felt so he secretly killed all of them when they were asleep and then committed suicide after that. A third theory was that all the bodies found were not even real. Someone in the underground was creating fake dead bodies and marring their faces just to destroy Lau's uncle's business. Lau Fong is a very wealthy man and it is said that most of his money comes from that business that deals with medical seafaring goods,"

Ciel Phantomhive was silent for several moments. Then he turned to Madam Red.

"Did Lau Fong actually reveal any information about _himself_...?"

A worried look crossed the woman's crimson eyes. She shook her head slowly.

"No, now that I think about it, he actually didn't tell me anything regarding himself that I don't already know-

"-If you noticed, all he gave us was three blind theories...! That horrid man...He didn't give us any useful information at all. I was hoping that he would tell you enough evidence for us to deduct who the culprit was _without _having to go to the scene of the crime to figure it out... You know how much I _hate_ taking risks..."

_Even if Sebastian is with me _Ciel thought tiredly _I cannot afford to take these kinds of risks. We are dealing with people who could be severely mentally ill. Even Sebastian is not always perfect. If we're not careful, this could end badly._

The young master finally rose from the bed and laced his fingers together, setting his chin upon them.

"I suppose we don't have a choice. We will have to board a ship with these sailors in order to experience the murder for ourselves. It's not even guaranteed that the murderer will show his face. _Then _what will we do...?"

Suddenly Ciel gripped his forehead tightly with his hands. No. It was happening again. It was getting bad again. He began to breathe heavily and his face twisted violently in pain as he collapsed forcefully onto the wrinkled bed. Where were his headaches coming from...?! He didn't breathe in enough chemicals to have a headache of this level. Plus, he began to get these headaches _before _they even _arrived _at Beijing.

It was no coincidence. This pain, this recurring pain was trying to tell him something. He just couldn't figure out what.

Then just as abruptly as it had started, his migraine suddenly disappeared. Ciel was left breathing slowly and fearfully, his limbs feeling stiff and lethargic. It was irritating, but it was also frightening. During these ordeals he really did believe he could die. That strike into the eye. He could still feel the phantom shadow of it lingering. The horrendous hallucinations. It was an instinctive message of some kind. His gut feeling was telling him there was something he missed, a curtain he overlooked.

Ciel grumbled and just lay there, still, save for the weak breathing through his nose.

Madam Red looked over at him with pity in her eyes and a slight guilt.

"You know, Ciel dear, I do understand why you suspect Lau's uncle. He is a strange man who we cannot seem to trust. But just hear me out, just this time. I feel like we are missing something. Lau Fong just doesn't seem to fit as the murderer of this case that we have been given..."

The young master sighed and stared at the ceiling of the canopy bed. Then he took his aunt's hand and gently smoothed her fingers. Then he got up and kissed her softly on the cheek.

"I know. I have the same feeling. But there is only one way for us to find out..."

She sighed and chuckled quietly.

"Alright. We'll set off tomorrow, then. For now, get some sleep, Ciel dear. Your mental health worries me..."

Then the Madam got up and began to leave the room, the gentle rustling of her silk dress being the only sound announcing her departure. She turned off the light, and closed the door until it was just a crack, only a thin shaft of light peeking through.

"Good night," She whispered kindly.

"Good night," Ciel mumbled groggily, yet he still felt as restless as the undead.

When she was out of earshot, Sebastian returned to watch his young master fall asleep.

"You know me so well," Ciel noted, only partially conscious. " - sometimes I think you can read my mind..."

"Ah, it's only an understanding formed by habit, sir," The butler replied with a grin.

"We are going to venture onto one of those ships tomorrow. It's the only way we can catch the murderer in the act...I suppose,"

"Of course, my lord,"

An empty silence filled the room. Then Ciel sighed and grimaced when his voice sounded weak.

"Sebastian...No matter what events happen tomorrow, I am counting on you to protect me with your life,"

The butler placed a hand upon his heart and bowed lightly.

"Yes, my lord. Isn't that how it always is...?"

Ciel smiled, though it was hard to see it in the darkness.

"Yes. That's how it always is,"


End file.
